Sunday, April 6, 2014

Albany's Vouchers Corruption and Work Load 118

State legislators put in for $2.5 million in daily stipends for their trips to Albany this year, a 6 percent increase from the same period last year for the often criticized reimbursement program, GannettAlbany reports:

* New York State Assemblyman William Scarborough pleaded guilty to federal felony charges of wire fraud and theft, and is expected to plead guilty to additional state felony charges this afternoon, thePost-Standard reports: * Disgraced ex-Assemblyman William Scarborough of Queensfacesat least a year in prison after pleading guilty to ripping off taxpayers and campaign donors. “This is a very good man who made some very bad choices,” Scarborough’s attorney E. Stewart Jones said.* Assemblyman pleads guilty to fraud and theft charges(NYP)

Post’s ‘tabloid hit job’ scores on Scarborough(NYP Ed) Told you so. Back in October 2012, The Post reported that Assemblyman William Scarborough was one of many legislators abusing their “per diems” — the $171-a-night in food and lodging reimbursement that lawmakers get for days they’re in Albany. In fact, The Post reported, legislators were collecting cash for time spent far from the capital. State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli’s probe found that Scarborough had collected $73,000-plus in per diems over three years.

The feds easily made the case against the 20-year legislator by scouring cellphone tower transmissions to determine Scarborough’s whereabouts – which his attorney had fought unsuccessfully as inadmissible in court.

The Scarborough Voucher Reforms

A week after longtime lawmaker William Scarborough pleaded guilty to claiming $40,000 in bogus travel expenses, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie announced new rules governing the reimbursement system.* Assembly Speaker Heastie said a constitutional amendment to bar public officials convicted of a felony from receiving their pensions remains under discussion and would pass in some form, State of Politics reports: * * The Democratic-led Assembly also released new requirements for lawmakers to report their official travel in order to obtain reimbursements, State of Politicswrites: * Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie collected the second most in per diem travel expenses since 2013—$57,231.09—just shy of the $57,254.41 received by Assemblywoman Earlene Hooper, Gannett Albany reports: * Comptroller’s Office Releasing Lawmaker Per Diem Information (YNN) * Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie ranked a close second in the state Legislature in the amount of per-diem reimbursements since 2013, as he vowed this week to increase accountability over the lax system.

Assemblyman William Scarborough will serve at least a year behind bars when he pleads guilty to federal and state corruption charges on Thursday for illegally using about $40,000 in improper travel reimbursements,the Daily News writes:

* New York State Assemblyman William Scarborough pleaded guilty to federal felony charges of wire fraud and theft, and is expected to plead guilty to additional state felony charges this afternoon, thePost-Standard reports: * Disgraced ex-Assemblyman William Scarborough of Queensfacesat least a year in prison after pleading guilty to ripping off taxpayers and campaign donors. “This is a very good man who made some very bad choices,” Scarborough’s attorney E. Stewart Jones said.* Assemblyman pleads guilty to fraud and theft charges(NYP)

Post’s ‘tabloid hit job’ scores on Scarborough(NYP Ed) Told you so. Back in October 2012, The Post reported that Assemblyman William Scarborough was one of many legislators abusing their “per diems” — the $171-a-night in food and lodging reimbursement that lawmakers get for days they’re in Albany. In fact, The Post reported, legislators were collecting cash for time spent far from the capital. State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli’s probe found that Scarborough had collected $73,000-plus in per diems over three years.

The feds easily made the case against the 20-year legislator by scouring cellphone tower transmissions to determine Scarborough’s whereabouts – which his attorney had fought unsuccessfully as inadmissible in court.

New York Assemblyman William Scarborough to plead guiltyto federal corruption charges: source(NYDN)* Indicted Assemblyman William Scarborough is scheduled to plead guilty to two federal felony corruption charges on May 7 as part of a tentative plea deal, an unnamed source told the Daily News: * Assemblyman Sheldon Silver once again pleaded not guilty to an expanded federal indictment, part of his ongoing corruption trial, and a judge set his trial date for Nov. 2, the Observer reports: * As the judge set the ​trial date for Silver’s corruption case, the former Assembly speaker’s lawyers accused federal prosecutors of withholding key evidence, the Post reports: * Source: Scarborough To Enter Guilty Plea To State Charges (YNN) Queens Assemblyman Bill Scarborough is expected to plead guilty to felony corruption charges being brought by state officials, automatically triggering his ouster from the state Legislature, according to a source familiar with the proceedings. Scarborough has been accused by state prosecutors of misusing campaign funds, including more than $38,000 in funds for personal use as part of a 23-count indictment filed by Comptroller Tom DiNapoli and Attorney General Eric Schneiderman. Meanwhile, Scarborough is expected to also plead guilty to federal corruption charges as well.* Assemblyman Scarborough to Step Down and Plead Guilty to Corruption Charges (NYT) William Scarborough, a New York assemblyman from Queens, plans to plead guilty next week to federal charges accusing him of stealing about $40,000 from the state.

Assemblyman William Scarborough’s cellphone,legislative swipe cards, insurance claims, toll records and motor vehicle activity to pick apart hundreds of travel vouchers he submitted to the state over a five-year period ending in 2012. The Queens Democrat was arrested last October on an 11-count federal indictment that charged he submitted fraudulent travel vouchers.*Indicted Assemblyman Posts Ads for CriminalInvestigation, Ethics Training Jobs (NYO)

“I don’t lie, I don’t cheat, and I don’t steal,” said Cook, whose nonprofit Rockaway Boulevard Local Development Corp. prompted an investigation for allegedly misusing taxpayer funds. In 2010 and 2011, Cook collected a total $17,035 in daily and overnight stipends, plus other travel expenses — on top of her $79,500-a-year state salary. During the 2010 legislative session, she missed 51 meetings of the Assembly, 63 percent of the sessions. “I was sick for a very long time,” she said of her absences, but could not recall the dates.

The Rockaway Boulevard nonprofit folded in 2010 after The Post revealed how it misspent its money, most of which came from the Port Authority. It lost its tax-exempt status with the IRS in 2012 after failing to file tax returns for three years. Cook founded the organization in 1979 and lobbied the PA for cash in the 1990s as it began planning for the AirTrain from Jamaica to KennedyAirport. The PA agreed to give $8 million to Rockaway Boulevard LDC and had handed over $2.5 million by 2010. The organization used $560,500 to buy the empty lot in 2006 although the land was valued by the city at $287,000.The land was to be the site of a business resource center, but was never developed. The organization used $560,500 to buy the empty lot in 2006 although the land was valued by the city at $287,000. The land was to be the site of a business resource center, but was never developed. Cook told The Post in 2010 that there was a delay because the PA wanted to put the project out to bid, but the organization wanted to “hire our own people.” The nonprofit, which had two paid employees, also had a street-sweeping project, but contracted out the work to another organization, the Jamaica Chamber of Commerce. After the Post exposé, the PA cut off the cash and launched an investigation into the charity. Federal investigators also started a probe, and the group shut its storefront office on Rockaway Boulevard. It hasn’t filed required paperwork with the state since 2008. Cook, who was listed as the group’s president on its 2008 tax filing, said some of the charity’s former board members came together to rent the property.

Cook Not Cooked Because Queens, Albany DAs And AG Do Not Go After Cook Corruption

Vivian Cook navigates scandals as politician pals face charges (NYP) Assemblywoman Vivian Cook, a Queens Democrat, skirts on the edge of scandal while her fellow pols have been hauled off to prison. Her colleague Bill Scarborough is expected to plead guilty this week and resign his seat in a “per diem” travel expense scam. He was accused of submitting more than $40,000 in phony expenses and said last week he had “severe financial problems.” Cook also racked up thousands in per-diem expenses, including one 12-day stretch in 2010 when she said she was in Albany but didn’t attend any legislative sessions, The Post reported. Cook’s friend, former state Sen. Shirley Huntley, served time for embezzling $87,700 from a nonprofit, the Parents Information Network, to which Cook steered state money. Huntley and Cook went on shopping sprees with the ill-gotten gains, but Cook was never charged.

The Media Has Not Asked Why is There Only One Prosecutor Cleaning Up Corruption In NY? What are the Others Doing?

Cook sent another state grant to a purported Queens health clinic called Angeldocs run by Dr. Dorothy Ogundu. The money was supposed to create a demonstration kitchen. But after The Post revealed in 2012 that Angeldocs had no patients or staff and seemed to be a sham, Ogundu was arrested the following year and charged with scamming more than $370,000 in public money that was supposed to fund the clinic. Cook’s nonprofit Rockaway Boulevard Local Development Corp. came under federal investigation after The Post revealed how it misspent public money, including more than $2.5 million from the Port Authority. The organization, in 2006, used $560,500 to buy a derelict Rockaway Boulevard lot, which was supposed to be the site of a business resource center. The Attorney General’s Office, which oversees nonprofits, would not comment on whether the transaction was being investigated. * The Daily News’ Ken Lovett writes that Senate GOPcomplained tactics de Blasio urged donors to use in order to get more campaign funds to state Democrats last year, but many Republicans were engaging in the same practice:

“I don’t lie, I don’t cheat, and I don’t steal,” said Cook, whose nonprofit Rockaway Boulevard Local Development Corp. prompted an investigation for allegedly misusing taxpayer funds. In 2010 and 2011, Cook collected a total $17,035 in daily and overnight stipends, plus other travel expenses — on top of her $79,500-a-year state salary. During the 2010 legislative session, she missed 51 meetings of the Assembly, 63 percent of the sessions. “I was sick for a very long time,” she said of her absences, but could not recall the dates.

The Rockaway Boulevard nonprofit folded in 2010 after The Post revealed how it misspent its money, most of which came from the Port Authority. It lost its tax-exempt status with the IRS in 2012 after failing to file tax returns for three years. Cook founded the organization in 1979 and lobbied the PA for cash in the 1990s as it began planning for the AirTrain from Jamaica to KennedyAirport. The PA agreed to give $8 million to Rockaway Boulevard LDC and had handed over $2.5 million by 2010. The organization used $560,500 to buy the empty lot in 2006 although the land was valued by the city at $287,000.The land was to be the site of a business resource center, but was never developed. The organization used $560,500 to buy the empty lot in 2006 although the land was valued by the city at $287,000. The land was to be the site of a business resource center, but was never developed. Cook told The Post in 2010 that there was a delay because the PA wanted to put the project out to bid, but the organization wanted to “hire our own people.” The nonprofit, which had two paid employees, also had a street-sweeping project, but contracted out the work to another organization, the Jamaica Chamber of Commerce. After the Post exposé, the PA cut off the cash and launched an investigation into the charity. Federal investigators also started a probe, and the group shut its storefront office on Rockaway Boulevard. It hasn’t filed required paperwork with the state since 2008. Cook, who was listed as the group’s president on its 2008 tax filing, said some of the charity’s former board members came together to rent the property.

The legislators who last year collected the most in “per diem” payments — $172 a day meant to reimburse them for housing and food costs when they’re in session — were state senators and Assembly members who own property around the state capital.The taxpayer-funded checks, sometimes enough to cover a yearly mortgage, essentially pay politicians for sleeping in their own beds. Topping the list was Assemblyman Herman “Denny” Farrell Jr., a Harlem Democrat who raked in $21,632 in per-diem payments last year — and owns a $147,000 town house less than a mile from the Assembly chamber, state records show. The state’s per diem system is so lax that nothing prevents these property owners from collecting the money. No receipts are required to get the cash, which is doled out when lawmakers are in the capital for official business. But the payments are under scrutiny in the wake of scandals involving a long line of lawmakers. Former Brooklyn Assemblyman William Boyland Jr. was convicted of corruption last year, including lying about legislative work in Albany to collect more than $70,000 in unearned per-diem payments. A spokesman for Farrell said, “There are costs associated with traveling to and staying in Albany, whether that takes place in a house, an apartment or in a hotel.” But Farrell collected per diems that amounted to about $1,800 per month — triple the typical monthly mortgage payment for a house like his. For example, a buyer putting 20 percent down on a $147,000 house, and taking a 30-year loan with a fixed rate of 5 percent, would pay about $628 a month to the bank. Sen. Velmanette Montgomery, a Brooklyn Democrat, owns an Albany house valued at $155,000 and got $17,820 in per-diem payments in 2014, the second highest of any senator. The lawmaker purchased the property in 1986 and paid off the mortgage by 2008.

THE PER DIEM PROBLEM: Estimates for what constitute reasonable annual per diem amounts call several Albany lawmakers’ totals into question:http://goo.gl/pbsXZK

There is no Oversight of Albany's Per Diems Despite Continued AbusesWright routinely loads up on overnight state per diems(NYP) Harlem Assemblyman Keith Wright is routinely one of Albany’s highest
per-diem earners — and sometimes collected payments when he wasn’t even
in the state capital. On two occasions in 2011 — March 8 and Dec. 4 — he simply tacked on
an extra day to his trip, according to E-ZPass records provided by
Wright’s office.During another weeklong trip in March 2012, Wright went home one
night during the middle of the week, but submitted a claim for a full
night’s stay.More on Albany's Vouchers Corruption

Wright's Flack George Arzt Who Defends Wright's Per Diems is Also A Lobbyists for the City's Corrupt 911 Phone System

A
spokesman for Wright called the extra payments a “clerical” error. On
two other weeks in July 2012, Wright claimed to be in Albany for
several days but had no ­E-ZPass records to prove it. He was paid
$568.60 for each week. Arzt said Wright’s E-ZPass was “lost” and that
the assemblyman, who
also serves as the state Democratic chairman, was indeed in Albany as he
claimed. Like Putin Arzt Controls the political parties, work for both
the Manhattan and Brooklyn political bosses.

State Sen. Phil Boyle, who is behind a
bill to build a dorm for legislators in Albany, racked up $127,481
worth of lodging and food per diems during his six-year tenure in the
Assembly, the New York Post reports: http://goo.gl/xU8E1J

State senator behind lawmaker dorm idea racks up over $100K in per diems(NYP) The state senator behind a bill to build a dorm for lawmakers in the
capital, which he claims would save taxpayers money, racked up $127,481
in lodging and food per diems during his six-year tenure in the
Assembly — including more than $31,000 while the Legislature was not
even in session, according to state records.Sen. Phil Boyle (R-LI) collected the per diems all while owning a
home in the village of Delmar — which is just under five miles from the
Capitol building.Records show Boyle bought the house in November 2006 and sold it in
December 2012 after his election to the Senate. During the time Boyle
owned the home, he collected $117,997 in per diems.

Sen.
Malcolm Smith, Sen. John Sampson and now former Assemblyman Eric
Stevenson have all run up thousands in travel expenses, according to
records. All three also have run up per-diem reimbursements throughout
the year; not just through the legislative session – even on days the
Legislature wasn’t in session. Until October, state lawmakers received a
flat $165 per day for travel
expenses every time they traveled to Albany for an overnight visit. The
rate has since increased to the current $172 a day. More on Albany's Voucher Corruption

Assemblywoman Earlene Hooper flips out on floor of chamber(NYDN)
Assemblywoman Earlene Hooper (D-Nassau County) really didn't want to be
asked about the FBI's investigation Assemblyman William Scarborough's
per diems. I approached her twice on the floor of the Assembly Wednesday
afternoon and never got past introducing myself. "Why are you talking
to me?" she shouted at the top of her lungs at the
back of the chamber. "Why are you talking to me on the floor?"*
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver on
the FBI raid of Assemblyman William Scarborough’s offices: “It’s always
disappointing when things happen, but I believe in the criminal justice
system.”* After blowing up last week at the DN’s Ken Lovett, Assembly Deputy Speaker Earlene Hooper said she wants reporters confined to chairs at the front of the chamber.

The Jury Did Not Believe that Boyland's Was Using His Travel Vouchers Properly The interest in Mr. Scarborough follows the conviction of a Brooklyn assemblyman,
William F. Boyland Jr., a Democrat, on corruption charges after
prosecutors said he bilked the state out of more than $70,000 in fake
travel expenses. He was said to have solicited bribes from F.B.I. agents
in New York City on days he claimed he was in Albany on official
business. “I don’t think I have to give you proof,” Scarborough said when we asked him to provide hotel receipts.(NYP) * #NYAssembly
member William Scarborough submitted 25 travel vouchers for a total of
$18,030 from April 1, 2012 until Sept 30, 2012. Assemblyman Scarborough
says FBI raided his home, hotel and office investigating per Diem abuse*
Asm. William Scarborough says FBI raided his Albany/Queens office today
and busted in on him at the Albany hote * Scarborough, speaking to
reporters, says his next step is to hire a lawyer. Most people do it the
other way around.*NY Legislature has 3 branches: Assemb, Senate, FBI RT @CharmianNeary Just an ordinary day in your state legislature

Politicians caught collecting Albany per diems when they’re not there(NYP)
Claiming
she spent a marathon 12 consecutive days in Albany on
“legislative business,” Queens Assemblywoman Vivian Cook pocketed $171
for each reported overnight stay — a total $2,197 in taxpayer money from
March 21 to April 1, 2010. The Legislature was in session just three of
those days — and Cook was absent for all three, records show. “Me?
You’re kidding! No! I didn’t do that,” she told The Post.

Corrupt Albany Holds A TOGA PartyWhat
Do You Do When You Close Down the Moreland Investigation That Could Put
Some of You in Jail and the U.S. Attorney Reopens it, You Throw A Toga
Party

Albany On Double Secret ProbationState senator proposes dorm for legislators in Albany(NYP)
A Long Island lawmaker is channeling his inner “Animal House” with a
plan to build a college-style dormitory for legislators in Albany. The
“legislative dormitory facility” would save taxpayers the cost of
lodging state politicians in hotels while they’re in the Capitol

NYPIRG Reports Exposes the Real Albany Work Load

Sen. Sampson said one word in past six months at legislative(NYP)ALBANY — Scandal-plagued state Sen. John Sampson may have set a new record for fecklessness — uttering just one word from the Senate floor during the last six-month legislative session. “Aye,” was the only sound emanating from Sampson’s lips in 84 hours and 58 minutes of meetings, where 1,460 bills were passed, according to records compiled by the good-government group NYPIRG.The terse remark by the Brooklyn Democrat came during a roll call vote on the Dream Act, which would have provided tuition aid to undocumented students had it passed.Like every other legislator, Sampson collects a salary of $79,500, plus daily per diems when he’s in Albany.A man of few words, Sampson had even less to say in public after being indicted last year on charges of embezzling funds from foreclosure sales when he served as a court-appointed referee.Earlier this year, new charges were added of lying to the FBI about ownership of a liquor store.* Sampson foe jumps on report embattled pol said just one word(NYP)

Carmen Arroyo introduced one bill

He will stand trial next year.While Sampson kept his thoughts to himself, Sen. Liz Krueger (D-Manhattan) shared just about everything.She was tracked as the Senate’s top talker, spilling out 27,199 words during the session. Krueger is known for her willingness to debate bills and start conversations on just about any issue.Meanwhile, Assemblyman Jose Rivera (D-Bronx) didn’t introduce a single bill, while borough colleague Carmen Arroyo managed to sponsor just one piece of legislation.Two other legislators from the city had the worst attendance records. State Sen. Adriano Espaillat (D-Manhattan), who just lost a congressional primary to Rep. Charles Rangel, missed 891 votes and Assemblyman Micah Kellner (D-Manhattan), who was found to have harassed at least one female staffer, missed 937 votes.